The Chairman, Rivers State All Progressives Congress (APC) Caretaker Committee, Mr. Tony Okocha has said that he should be commended for revealing how they rigged local governments elections while he served as Chief of Staff to Rotimi Ameachi who was the former governor of the state rather than calling for his arrests.
Okocha disclosed this while addressing a press conference on Tuesday in Abuja.
Ironically, Okocha said the APC would not participate in any local government elections that will be conducted by the state governor, Sim Fubara, alleging that the election would be skewed in favour of a particular party.
He stated: “It takes courage to say so. And I have given you instances, I say show me one local government in any state where the opposition party won the local government election. Is it a normal situation? It is not a normal situation, these things happen. Nobody has controverted that I was not Chief of Staff. In my time, there was no election.
“The law frowned at it. When Wike became the Governor of the state, he went to court and the Federal High Court in Port Harcourt under Akanbi dissolved the election for gross irregularities. Isn’t that justifying what I said.
“It was a clean sweep in Oyo, PDP won all through, it was a clean sweep in Ebonyi, APC won? What is the magic, was it because the governors are performing? Was I caught in the act, No! It was a confession. I said I need to be commended.
“Yar’dua was elected as president and he confessed that the process that brought him as president was flawed. Did he resign? Nobody arrested the INEC chairman that conducted the election.”
When asked the status of the former Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Ameachi in the party, Okocha said the former minister had warned the party leadership in the state against inviting him for any party activities.
His words: “You will recall that at some point he got into law school and from the one year in law school, he became incommunicado. You are also aware that at some point after the Presidential primary election, he also decided to disappear into tin air.
“So whether he is a party member or not, I wouldn’t know. Of all the meetings we called…,I will give you an instance, there is this particular meeting we called for former governors and others. He sent a message to the Secretary of the party and warned him that he should never dare to send him a message about the party again. So should we go to his house and pack him?.”
He also alleged that ‘failed politicians’ who are planning to wrestle power from the ruling party through the backdoor are behind the planned nationwide protest.
Aggrieved Nigerians had been mobilising on social media for a week-long protest against bad governance in the country, a move that has sent fear into the spine of the government.
Okocha wondered why Nigerians are not protesting against their state governors in spite of the increased monthly allocation.
He emphasised that the ‘failed politicians’ who want to get into power through the backdoor should wait till 2027 to wrestle power from the APC if they can.
Okocha stated: “What are the reasons for the planned protests? That is the question we should begin to ask. The reason for the planned protest, I heard that they say there is hunger in the land. Is Tinubu the architect of hunger in the land?
“And I have asked the question, why are we not demonstrating, protesting against our governors?…The removal of fuel subsidy brought in money to the system and the President did not put the money in his pockets, he gave it out.
“I’m giving you a typical example now that those who are behind this are politicians who want to gain power through the backdoor, they should wait for 2027 to wrestle power from APC if they can.”